Bucs put RB Graham, LB Hayes on IR

Football Betting Lines

11/19/2008 - Tampa, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Tampa Bay Buccaneers placed running back Earnest Graham and rookie linebacker Geno Hayes on injured reserve Wednesday, ending their seasons.

The Bucs also signed running back Noah Herron and linebacker Matt McCoy on Wednesday.

Graham suffered a right ankle injury in Sunday's 19-13 win over the Minnesota Vikings. The five-year veteran was hurt on his first carry of the game and had to be helped to the sideline. Graham had also been nursing a knee injury in the week leading up to the game.

Graham and Warrick Dunn had split the running back duties this season, so Dunn will probably see more carries as a result of the injury. Graham leads the team with 563 yards and four touchdowns, while Dunn has chipped in 476 yards and one score.

Former first-round draft pick Carnell "Cadillac" Williams is also an option for the Bucs. Williams was activated off the physically unable to perform list early last week and has not played an NFL game since September 30, 2007 when he suffered a torn patellar tendon in a contest against Carolina. He returned to practice late last month after an arduous recovery and rehab.

Herron played in five games for the Packers in 2005 after they signed him off Pittsburgh's practice squad. He returned and played in all 16 games in 2006, but missed last season after suffering a knee injury. The Northwestern product has rushed for 273 yards and three touchdowns on 85 carries in his career, and has 29 receptions for 211 yards and two scores.

Hayes, a sixth-round pick out of Florida State, has eight tackles on defense and seven special teams tackles. He also blocked a punt and returned it for a touchdown in Tampa Bay's 27-3 win over Carolina on October 12.

McCoy, a fourth-year veteran who has also played with the Philadelphia Eagles and New Orleans Saints, was released in October by the Bucs.

The 7-3 Buccaneers travel to Detroit to play the 0-10 Lions on Sunday.

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Big Ten Conference odds

Teams that should be in: Michigan State, Indiana
Work left to do: Illinois, Purdue, Michigan, Iowa

Behind the big two, the pecking order might be in a bit of flux. Has Michigan State passed Indiana after handling the Hoosiers in East Lansing? Where is Illinois in that mix? What looked like a four-big league last week could be morphing into five -- and even six is not unthinkable at this point if everything breaks right.

Should be in:

Michigan State [21-8 (8-6), RPI: 20, SOS: 15] The Spartans made it four-for-four on the homestand, a gigantic accomplishment that leaves them in extremely good shape. MSU is only 1-6 on the road and is at Michigan and at Wisconsin to close things out, meaning the date with the Wolverines on Tuesday looms very, very large. Beating Texas early will hold up well, as will the rout of Bradley and the win over BYU, but will 8-8 be enough? It very well could be, as the computer numbers are good, but why chance it?

Indiana [18-9 (8-6), RPI: 24, SOS: 32] Hmm ... good thing the last two are at Northwestern and home to Penn State, because IU might want to get both to feel completely safe after dropping its third in the last four, fading after halftime at Michigan State. Who knew the best nonconference win would be over Southern Illinois, which is a gift that keeps on giving for the Hoosiers. The win over Wisconsin also looks good on the mantel.

Work left to do:

Illinois [21-9 (9-6), RPI: 31, SOS: 25] A good performance at Penn State leaves the Illini in pretty good shape. Can they go to Iowa and take care of business to really look on their way? That's a huge game, as there is a possible cluster of teams that will end at 9-7. Illinois beat Bradley, but has lost to Xavier. A 9-7 mark and a semifinals trip in Chicago could be enough with the computer profile hanging in there, but it would be better not to mess around, clinching at least a tie for third.

Purdue [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 47, SOS: 28] Couldn't get it done at Iowa, but did win at Northwestern to put 9-7 squarely in sight. Where does that leave the Boilermakers, though? Even if they beat Minnesota and Northwestern at home, that won't help the computer numbers. Nonconference wins over Virginia, DePaul and Oklahoma are solid, but not spectacular. The Boilers very well might need an upset in the B10 quarters to have a legit claim.

Michigan [19-10 (7-7), RPI: 55, SOS: 53] Well, Michigan did what it needed to do, winning at Minnesota to take control of its fate. The Wolverines have Michigan State and an already-wrapped-up-the-league Ohio State at home to close, so the chances are there. Win both and we can talk. There is no marquee win yet in the profile, and the Wolverines were splattered in several games against name opponents. A mediocre computer profile fueled by a lack of road wins isn't helping, either.

Iowa [16-12 (8-6), RPI: 80, SOS: 64] For the sake of being complete, we'll add Iowa, this season's Stanford. It's plausible that the Hawkeyes could get to 10-6 (at Penn State, vs. Illinois left), but where does that leave them after a gruesome nonconference performance where the best win was over ... Toledo? Iowa State? Cornell?? If they get to 10-6, we can start to look at what they need to do in the B10 tourney, although my gut sense is that they would need to make the final and have knocked off Ohio State or Wisconsin on the way to have any real claim.

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